Posted by Editoress on 03/24/14
Luka Mezgec has won the opening stage of the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya just days after taking his first win of the season at the Handzame Classic.
Luka finished off a superb display of controlling by Team Giant-Shimano, as they set pace throughout the day behind the day’s breakaway and then brought Luka to the fore at the finish to sprint for the win.
This is Luka’s first WorldTour victory since winning a stage of the Tour of Beijing at the end of last season, and it has been a target for him since the start of the season.
The team spent most of the day at the head of the peloton, be it controlling the pace behind the day’s escapees, or winding up the pace late on to deter any attacks and keep Luka in position.
Tom Peterson and Cheng Ji spent well over 130km riding on the front and making sure that the break didn’t get too far ahead. After the race came back together late on, the team took to the head of the bunch to set the finish up and Luka unleashed his sprint from around 300m out.
Despite being passed, Luka clawed his way back through, holding his speed and taking a fine win which sees him take the lead in not only the general classification, but also the point’s classification and the young rider’s classification.
Coach, Addy Engels was impressed with how the team rode today. “At the start a break of two got away and no one wanted to take up the chase. The gap reached eight minutes and we were a bit afraid that nobody would ride so we started pacing the peloton and controlling their advantage. We didn’t go full gas and soon enough other teams got nervous and joined the chase.
“At the end the guys got Luka into a good position and he did a really impressive sprint, going from quite far out. This was the main goal from the outset, to win a stage and to succeed with this on the first day is perfect. Tomorrow we will have the jersey to defend but it is a similar stage to today so we could see another bunch sprint. It depends how controlled the race is but we will see.”
Luka managed to tell us how it went after his podium duties: “It was a hard day today and I suffered a but on the climbs but the guys kept me going and supported me well.
“With 3km to go Warren Barguil brought me into position and then after that Georg Preidler took me right to the front with 1km to race. I lost a few places and had to go from far out to get through. Someone tried to box me in against the barriers but I was able to come through and get it at the end.
“Last week’s win was great for the confidence and together with good legs and a great team that makes the difference. We will try to defend the jersey tomorrow but after that the race will become very difficult.”
Team Giant-Shimano press release
Results from the first stage in Spain
Stage 1: Calella to Calella, 169.7 Km | |
1 Luka Mezgec (Slo) Team Giant-Shimano | 4:09:13 |
2 Leigh Howard (Aus) Orica-GreenEDGE | |
3 Julian Alaphilippe (Fra) Omega Pharma - QuickStep | |
4 Paul Martens (Ger) Belkin-Pro Cycling Team | |
5 Tosh van der Sande (Bel) Lotto Belisol | |
6 Daniele Ratto (Ita) Cannondale Pro Cycling | |
7 Marcus Burghardt (Ger) BMC Racing Team | |
8 Roberto Ferrari (Ita) Lampre-Merida | |
9 Samuel Dumoulin (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale | |
10 Kévin Reza (Fra) Team Europcar | |
11 Gianluca Brambilla (Ita) Omega Pharma - QuickStep | |
12 Anthony Roux (Fra) FDJ.fr | |
13 Davide Vigano (Ita) Caja Rural - Seguros | |
14 Julian Kern (Ger) AG2R La Mondiale | |
15 Michel Kreder (Ned) Wanty - Groupe Gobert | |
16 Martin Kohler (Sui) BMC Racing Team | |
17 Angel Madrazo (Esp) Caja Rural - Seguros | |
18 David Tanner (Aus) Belkin-Pro Cycling Team | |
19 Christian Meier (Can) Orica-GreenEDGE | |
20 Jan Polanc (Slo) Lampre-Merida | |
21 Joaquin Rodriguez (Esp) Team Katusha | |
22 Pieter Serry (Bel) Omega Pharma - QuickStep | |
23 Javier A. Acevedo (Col) Garmin Sharp | |
24 Beppu Fumiyuki (Jpn) Trek Factory Racing | |
25 Alberto Contador (Esp) Tinkoff-Saxo | |
26 Romain Bardet (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale | |
27 Rory Sutherland (Aus) Tinkoff-Saxo | |
28 Warren Barguil (Fra) Team Giant-Shimano | |
29 Cédric Pineau (Fra) FDJ.fr | |
30 Samuel Sanchez (Esp) BMC Racing Team | |
31 Brett Lancaster (Aus) Orica-GreenEDGE | |
32 Luis Leon Sanchez (Esp) Caja Rural - Seguros | |
33 Wilco Kelderman (Ned) Belkin-Pro Cycling Team | |
34 Carlos Betancur (Col) AG2R La Mondiale | |
35 Daniel Martin (Irl) Garmin Sharp | |
36 Georg Preidler (Aut) Team Giant-Shimano | |
37 Giampaolo Caruso (Ita) Team Katusha | |
38 Yohan Bagot (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credit | |
39 Arnold Jeannesson (Fra) FDJ.fr | |
40 Kanstantsin Siutsou (Blr) Team Sky | |
41 Dennis Vanendert (Bel) Lotto Belisol | |
42 Giacomo Nizzolo (Ita) Trek Factory Racing | |
43 Maciej Paterski (Pol) CCC Polsat Polkowice | |
44 Stéphane Poulhies (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credit | |
45 Tejay Van Garderen (USA) BMC Racing Team | |
46 Laurens Ten Dam (Ned) Belkin-Pro Cycling Team | |
47 Christopher Froome (GBr) Team Sky | |
48 Natnael Berhane (Eri) Team Europcar | |
49 Cayetano J. Sarmiento (Col) Cannondale Pro Cycling | |
50 George Bennett (NZl) Cannondale Pro Cycling | |
51 Ben Gastauer (Lux) AG2R La Mondiale | |
52 Andrew Talansky (USA) Garmin Sharp | |
53 Adam Yates (GBr) Orica-GreenEDGE | |
54 Danilo Hondo (Ger) Trek Factory Racing | |
55 Mikel Nieve (Esp) Team Sky | |
56 Mattia Cattaneo (Ita) Lampre-Merida | |
57 Marco Minnaard (Ned) Wanty - Groupe Gobert | |
58 Romain Hardy (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credit | |
59 Thomas Degand (Bel) Wanty - Groupe Gobert | |
60 Eros Capecchi (Ita) Movistar Team | |
61 Paolo Tiralongo (Ita) Astana Pro Team | |
62 Marek Rutkiewicz (Pol) CCC Polsat Polkowice | |
63 Fabio Aru (Ita) Astana Pro Team | |
64 Ryder Hesjedal (Can) Garmin Sharp | |
65 Simon Clarke (Aus) Orica-GreenEDGE | |
66 Christopher Horner (USA) Lampre-Merida | |
67 Christophe Le Mevel (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credit | |
68 Michel Koch (Ger) Cannondale Pro Cycling | |
69 Damien Howson (Aus) Orica-GreenEDGE | |
70 Jurgen V.Den Broeck (Bel) Lotto Belisol | |
71 Bruno Pires (Por) Tinkoff-Saxo | |
72 Sébastien Minard (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale | |
73 Robert Kiserlovski (Cro) Trek Factory Racing | |
74 Pablo Lastras (Esp) Movistar Team | |
75 Daniel Moreno (Esp) Team Katusha | |
76 Pawel Poljanski (Pol) Tinkoff-Saxo | |
77 Jean Marc Marino (Fra) Cannondale Pro Cycling | |
78 José Herrada (Esp) Movistar Team | |
79 Davide Rebellin (Ita) CCC Polsat Polkowice | |
80 David Arroyo (Esp) Caja Rural - Seguros | |
81 Branislau Samoilau (Blr) CCC Polsat Polkowice | |
82 Rigoberto Uran (Col) Omega Pharma - QuickStep | |
83 Julian Arredondo (Col) Trek Factory Racing | |
84 Nathan Earle (Aus) Team Sky | |
85 Nairo Quintana (Col) Movistar Team | |
86 Rudy Molard (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credit | |
87 Jhoan E. Chaves (Col) Orica-GreenEDGE | |
88 Kevin Seeldraeyers (Bel) Wanty - Groupe Gobert | |
89 Lukasz Owsian (Pol) CCC Polsat Polkowice | |
90 Yannick Eijssen (Bel) BMC Racing Team | |
91 Heiner R. Parra (Col) Caja Rural - Seguros | |
92 Jussi Veikkanen (Fin) FDJ.fr | |
93 Johannes Fröhlinger (Ger) Team Giant-Shimano | |
94 Cameron Wurf (Aus) Cannondale Pro Cycling | |
95 Carlos Verona (Esp) Omega Pharma - QuickStep | |
96 Alberto Losada (Esp) Team Katusha | |
97 Bart De Clercq (Bel) Lotto Belisol | |
98 Adrian Honkisz (Pol) CCC Polsat Polkowice | |
99 Stig Broeckx (Bel) Lotto Belisol | |
100 Pierre Rolland (Fra) Team Europcar | |
101 Peter Stetina (USA) BMC Racing Team | |
102 Sander Armee (Bel) Lotto Belisol | |
103 Eduard Vorganov (Rus) Team Katusha | |
104 Phillip Gaimon (USA) Garmin Sharp | |
105 Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Astana Pro Team | |
106 Alexandre Geniez (Fra) FDJ.fr | |
107 Thomas Danielson (USA) Garmin Sharp | |
108 Steven Kruijswijk (Ned) Belkin-Pro Cycling Team | |
109 Maxim Belkov (Rus) Team Katusha | |
110 Darwin Atapuma (Col) BMC Racing Team | |
111 Koldo Fernandez (Esp) Garmin Sharp | |
112 Pavel Brutt (Rus) Team Katusha | |
113 Domenico Pozzovivo (Ita) AG2R La Mondiale | |
114 Marcos Garcia (Esp) Caja Rural - Seguros | |
115 Amets Txurruka (Esp) Caja Rural - Seguros | |
116 Stef Clement (Ned) Belkin-Pro Cycling Team | |
117 Cristiano Salerno (Ita) Cannondale Pro Cycling | |
118 Kenny Elissonde (Fra) FDJ.fr | |
119 Martijn Keizer (Ned) Belkin-Pro Cycling Team | |
120 Ivan Basso (Ita) Cannondale Pro Cycling | |
121 Lawrence Warbasse (USA) BMC Racing Team | |
122 Winner Anacona (Col) Lampre-Merida | |
123 Mikael Cherel (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale | |
124 Daniel Navarro (Esp) Cofidis, Solutions Credit | |
125 Lieuwe Westra (Ned) Astana Pro Team | |
126 Przemyslaw Niemiec (Pol) Lampre-Merida | |
127 Kristof Vandewalle (Bel) Trek Factory Racing | |
128 Chris Sörensen (Den) Tinkoff-Saxo | |
129 Kristijan Durasek (Cro) Lampre-Merida | |
130 Javier Moreno (Esp) Movistar Team | |
131 Mikel Landa (Esp) Astana Pro Team | |
132 Jérôme Baugnies (Bel) Wanty - Groupe Gobert | |
133 Thibaut Pinot (Fra) FDJ.fr | |
134 Igor Anton (Esp) Movistar Team | |
135 Antonio Piedra (Esp) Caja Rural - Seguros | |
136 Thomas De Gendt (Bel) Omega Pharma - QuickStep | |
137 Ruben Plaza (Esp) Movistar Team | |
138 Andrey Zeits (Kaz) Astana Pro Team | |
139 Jérémy Roy (Fra) FDJ.fr | |
140 Jesper Hansen (Den) Tinkoff-Saxo | |
141 Jesus Hernandez (Esp) Tinkoff-Saxo | |
142 Luis Angel Mate (Esp) Cofidis, Solutions Credit | |
143 David Lopez (Esp) Team Sky | |
144 Fredrik Kessiakoff (Swe) Astana Pro Team | |
145 Jens Voigt (Ger) Trek Factory Racing | |
146 Serge Pauwels (Bel) Omega Pharma - QuickStep | |
147 Maxime Mederel (Fra) Team Europcar | |
148 Tomasz Marczynski (Pol) CCC Polsat Polkowice | |
149 Jose Serpa (Col) Lampre-Merida | |
150 Nathan Brown (USA) Garmin Sharp | |
151 Sergio Paulinho (Por) Tinkoff-Saxo | |
152 Boris Vallee (Bel) Lotto Belisol | |
153 Mateusz Taciak (Pol) CCC Polsat Polkowice | |
154 Davide Malacarne (Ita) Team Europcar | |
155 Francis De Greef (Bel) Wanty - Groupe Gobert | |
156 Thomas Voeckler (Fra) Team Europcar | |
157 Chad Haga (USA) Team Giant-Shimano | |
158 Jonathan Castroviejo (Esp) Movistar Team | |
159 Thomas Damuseau (Fra) Team Giant-Shimano | |
160 Angel Vicioso (Esp) Team Katusha | |
161 Jack Bobridge (Aus) Belkin-Pro Cycling Team | |
162 Perrig Quemeneur (Fra) Team Europcar | all s.t. |
163 Greg Henderson (NZl) Lotto Belisol | 2:58 |
164 Sam Bewley (NZl) Orica-GreenEDGE | |
165 Cheng Ji (Chn) Team Giant-Shimano | |
166 Alexsandr Dyachenko (Kaz) Astana Pro Team | |
167 Christophe Kern (Fra) Team Europcar | |
168 Romain Lemarchand (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credit | |
169 Nico Sijmens (Bel) Wanty - Groupe Gobert | |
170 Haimar Zubeldia (Esp) Trek Factory Racing | |
171 Gregory Habeaux (Bel) Wanty - Groupe Gobert | |
172 Danny Pate (USA) Team Sky | |
173 Richie Porte (Aus) Team Sky | |
174 Petr Vakoc (Cze) Omega Pharma - QuickStep | |
175 Joshua Edmondson (GBr) Team Sky | all s.t. |
176 Thomas Peterson (USA) Team Giant-Shimano | 6:29 |
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